


A Changed Perspective

by Drenosa



Series: Just some Farah stuff [3]
Category: The Wayhaven Chronicles (Interactive Fiction)
Genre: Based on a Tumblr Post, F/M, Hanging Around, Mild Embarrassment, Re-Upload because of Tech Shenanigans, Simple Traps Work Best
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:54:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25547020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drenosa/pseuds/Drenosa
Summary: Having a keen technological inclined mind or being able to throw a good punch or two is all well and good. Sometimes you just miss what's right at your feet.
Relationships: Detective/Farah Hauville, Male Detective/Farah Hauville
Series: Just some Farah stuff [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1807123
Kudos: 9





	A Changed Perspective

_Somewhere inside a large abandoned factory ..._

With another groan Toren let himself drop back down to his hanging position. It was his third futile attempt in trying to unbind the tough climbing rope, before he realised that the awaiting drop onto the concrete floor below would most likely cause him to break something. His focus was also mildly undercut by the headache he got from bonking his head on the floor has his legs were pulled from underneath him; he counted himself lucky he didn't feel any signs of a concussion.  
A deep sigh warped into another groan as Toren looked around. His body swayed gently as he moved and he spotted his phone, it's screen cracked from top to bottom. It was far out of his reach and he cursed himself for leaving his back-up phone in his jacket back in the car.  
The room he had found himself was definitely the jackpot. Several boxes that held who-knows-what, a big plastic folding basket with several stacks of documents and probably trade manifests all neatly sorted.

Looking around some more he tried to figure out the mechanism that was suspending him five feet from the floor below. He had quickly identified the different pulleys, ropes and the sizeable counterweight and marvelled and cursed at the simplicity of it all. It was constructed in such a way that it was partially hidden inside and behind the brick wall. The rope itself had been made to look like it was simply part of the detritus spread around the place. The pulley right above his feet looked like had been there for decades but a closer inspection revealed a nearly pristine object, simply covered in grime and dust. The counterweight itself appeared to be an old oil drum. Whilst he couldn't really see what was inside from his position, he could be a decent guess at it being filled with bricks or scrap metal. A barrel full of anything would really do the trick anyway. Toren could really punch himself for stepping into this trap. Too preoccupied with getting too the evidence, one slightly too careless a step and bam! Feet in the air and bump on his head.

With a bit of twisting and arm waving to keep the blood flow going more comfortably, Toren commiserated at his precarious situation. Upside-down, in an abandoned factory, out of reach of his phone, having only left a simple message back at the Warehouse that he was heading out for a bit. Another sigh escaped him as he looked forlorn at his phone. Even if he could reach it, he knew that the factory he was stuck in would make it impossible to make a phone call or send a message. All he could really do was to hope and believe that at least one member of Bravo could manage to come to same conclusion as he did and head towards his location.

* * *

Toren wasn't sure how much time had passed, but he knew that his prolonged position of feet-above-head wasn't doing him any favours. When he heard something clang outside the confines of his room, he felt his body stiffen before putting up (down?) his arms in a rather useless defensive posture. He didn't want to risk it calling out without knowing who or what was out there.

"Toren! Please be you!?" The sudden familiar shout made his body relax far past the point he thought capable of in his tense state. Farah must have felt his presence as she entered the building. Furthermore, the sudden change in his body's state of being from overly tense to almost completely relaxed must alerted her even more as she called out again. "Toren! I'm coming!" The apprehension that coated her earlier words was quickly replaced by joyous relief.

"Farah! I'm alright. Just... don't laugh when you come in?"

"Laugh at what, mister?! I've been tearing down the countryside looking for... you..." There she stood in the doorway, breathing heavily and wide-eyed as she took in Toren's situation. For all the discomfort he was feeling across his whole body, he managed to keep quite the straight face even if was a lot redder than usual.

"Hey." he said deadpan. "Fancy seeing you here."

Farah took a tentative step forward. Her face was a whirlwind of expression, going through surprised, worried, amused and relieved among a number of others. Then she dashed forwards and gave him one of the tightest hugs he's ever had. It was a rather strange affair. Toren was suspended high enough from the floor his face was at the height of her waist, whilst her face was trying to burrow into his solar plexus. After managing to return her hug with a minimum of awkwardness, he disentangled himself from her embrace so he could hold a somewhat 'proper' conversation. A conversation that apparently still had to wait a bit, judging by Farah's near angry yet almost tearful expression.

"Seriously Toren, do you have any idea how worried I was? How worried the rest were? Why didn't tell where you went?!" Farah said as she lowered herself down to his eye-level. Toren would have laughed at that if hadn't caught the worry in her voice. He reached to hold one of her hands whilst the other touched her cheek, after brushing a lock of curls out of the way. He felt remarkably calm he looked into those beautiful amber eyes. 

"I'm really sorry for that. I promise to be a bit more precise in my coming and going next time." he said with a conciliatory smile, truly meaning what he said. "But can we see about getting me down first? I'd like to be able to feel my legs again."

At that Farah let out a little laugh and Toren revelled in that simple tiny sound. There was something determined about it, and happy. She got up with a jump in her step and together they started to work out how to get him down without breaking his neck in the process.

* * *

It had quickly proven to be very difficult to get Toren down safely. The rope was originally meant to carry and secure heavy loads, meaning that Farah couldn't simply break it. Cutting the rope wasn't a possibility as well. Neither of them had a knife on their person. Even if they did have one, they way the rope was worked away into the wall meant that Farah could hold and lower him after cutting the rope. Stacking debris wasn't preferable as well. The chance of getting sepsis or tetanus wasn't something to sneeze at in a place like this. Farah looked on, somewhat miserable at being unable to help him.

Toren grumbled before clicking his tongue. "Get Nate." He said curtly. Farah perked up, ready to go do so, but too curious to speed away.

"Why Nate?" was the slightly confused question.

"Because Ava would lecture me for at least ten minutes," he said as a suppressed snicker reached his ear." Mason would definitely rub this in for an equal amount of time." followed by a snort. "And Nate wouldn't do either because he's too much of a gentleman to kick a man whilst he's down. Or... you know... upside-down." A laugh this time.

"Okay, I'll head out. Shouldn't be long!" Farah said as she darted out of the room. Not even a second out and her head popped back into view, a more familiar mischievous smile on her face. "Don't go anywhere!"

"Bring a knife!" Toren managed to yell just before she disappeared again. 

* * *

Once again, Toren wasn't quite sure how long he had waited. There wasn't all that much light in the room and whichever way he looked, his view was only few meters at most, ending in either debris or crumbling walls. His wait however, was abruptly ended when a new taller figure filled the doorway. The barked laugh that emanated from the figure elicited out of Toren the deepest groan of the night. Mason was quickly pushed further into the room by Farah, who was apologizing profusely. "I'm really sorry! Ava and Nate were busy talking to Agent Mossberg. They were basically stalling for time whilst we were looking for you. They also now know what happened to you."

Mason meanwhile had a sharp grin, deep amusement visible across his entire body. He regarded Toren intently, as if he was committing the picture to memory. "Very interesting situation you got yourself in there, handsome."

Toren didn't really have any response to that, opting instead to cross his arms and grumbled noncommittally. Combined with a piercing stare, normally this would have made for quite an imposing sight. It's just a shame that the bite was very much taken out of it when done upside-down.

"So, what's the problem then, huh?" the surly vampire asked after another low laugh. "And how'd you end up like this, anyway?"

In a few short sentences Toren recounted the events that led up to his precarious position, the evidence piled up nearby, the mechanism holding him upwards and the high injury chance with getting him down with just him and Farah. The whole story was done in maybe three minutes and Mason was being friendly enough today, with him just listening to it all. He did seem to pay closer attention to the mechanical explanation, casting his eyes to the various parts of the contraption as Toren pointed each part out. After the explanation was over Mason seemed to mull things over looking at Toren, Farah and the contraption. A slow sly grin crept onto his face has he came to some sort of a conclusion. He pulled a flip-knife out of a back pocket, casually throwing at Farah. "Cut the rope, I'll hold your boytoy up"

This elicited a dual expression of surprised and mild outrage of the couple. This only amused him more, basically doubling down. "Heh, I'm not hearing a denial. Now come on, the dust in this place is getting annoying."

Some half-hearted protest, general mucking about and awkward physical contact later, Toren was finally back down on the floor. Standing so soon had proven to be too much for his aching legs, so he was sitting on the dusty floor trying to rub some life back into his long legs. Farah was on her haunches beside him, prodding him with questions about this 'staticky feeling" in his legs whilst actually prodding his legs to determine their condition. The worry she was radiating earlier having been completely replaced by curiosity.

"Now that I've completed my task as babysitter," Mason began. His tone very much suggesting that there was supposed to be an 'again' in that sentence. His pointed stare adding extra weight to that. "Let's get this shit wrapped up, I feel like I'll be sneezing out dust for weeks." Without waiting for a reply or acknowledgement he stalked out of the room to make his way to the cleaner air outside.

Farah and Toren, the latter's legs having recovered enough to get moving, agreed to that sentiment and made their way out as well, albeit much slower than their freckled companion. Walking side-by-side they took their time, basking in the closeness of one another. Farah looked up at Toren with a slightly quizzical expression. "You're having a thinking face right now. Care to let some of those thoughts trickle down?"

Toren gave an amused hum before clicking his teeth. "I think our broody friend was enjoying himself too much with my 'interesting situation'." He looked down to the amazing woman beside him, giving her a conspiratory grin. "So I was thinking of maybe arranging some sort of payback."

This seemed to light up something in her as well. Her bright amber eyes seemed to shine even brighter and it looked like there was going to be Mischief in the future.

* * *

Outside Mason had just finished sending a text to Ava when he felt a shiver creeping over him. He rolled his shoulders, thinking that there was a growing chill in the air

**Author's Note:**

> So this was based on a prompt over on [Sera's Tumblr](https://seraphinitegames.tumblr.com/search/trap) that I made anonymously all the way back in the slightly less dark ages of [checks notes] october 2017?! This from all the way when the first book wasn't even finished yet. What a wondrous time that was.  
> I probably made things way more complicated than definitely necessary, but I ain't no good word-to-sentence-maker just yet.  
> Yeah so anyway... Like it if you do, or not if you don't. Up to you.  
> 


End file.
